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Jun 19

Importance of Food Stamps in Reducing US Hunger

This post is written by May May Leung, PhD, RD is an assistant professor at the CUNY School of Public Health at Hunter College.  Her research expertise includes the development and evaluation of innovative health communication and community-based interventions to prevent childhood obesity.

In a recent essay, Dr. Thomas Frieden (Director of the US Centers for Disease Control), discussed the government’s role in protecting the health and safety of the public. One role he mentions is take population-wide action to more effectively address health problems, such as immunization and seat belt mandates and fortification of food.

As you may well know, food insecurity is another major problem that many in the US are confronted with – an estimated 50.1 million Americans are food insecure. While voluntary-based aid such as soup kitchens and local food charities play a major role by increasing food access for those in greatest need, it is the responsibility of our government to help those in need through systematic benefits obtained through programs  like Food Stamps, now known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Each year, SNAP helps over 45 million people access foods they otherwise would not be able to afford. Forty-seven percent of SNAP recipients are children and over a quarter of recipients are in households with seniors or disabled people. Unfortunately, the program is facing cuts that could amount to $240 to $300 per year for an average family of three.  To you and me this may not seem like a lot, but it very well could be a significant loss for families that depend on SNAP to be able to put ‘some’ food on the table.  In addition, it’s estimated that the projected benefits cap will result in tens of thousands of jobs lost, thus adding to the cycle of poverty-related hunger.

The Senate passed their version of the new farm bill last week, which proposed a $4.1 billion cut to food stamps over the next ten years.  Meanwhile the House version, which proposes a drastic $20 billion cut, is scheduled to be considered later this week.  If the House passes their version, a House-Senate conference committee is likely to be appointed to reconcile the significant differences into a single bill.  However, the White House has already announced that it is likely to veto the House version because food stamps are “a cornerstone of our nation’s food assistance safety net.”

Let’s hope the cuts that Congress decides to enact will take this comment into strong consideration and limit the negative impact on people already struggling to make ends meet.

    written by May May Leung

Jun 18

The banality of evil

This book review is by Ezra Ellenberg a rising senior at the University of Maryland at College Park. He’s majoring in philosophy with a minor in neuroscience. This summer he’s interning at Dwolla. 
 
“The Good Nurse” is at once a tragic story of a tortured, murderous individual and an indictment of our healthcare system that allowed him to slip through its pores. As the book progresses, anger, confusion, and disgust shift away from the incarcerated nurse and onto the unpunished hospital administrators. How many of these deaths could have been avoided if healthcare providers were more concerned with patient safety than upholding their reputation or covering their asses? Then again, how can we expect hospitals to champion patient safety entirely and unconditionally when they constantly face the threat of law suits, crippling losses in revenue, and eventual and unavoidable employee layoffs? The result is a system deficient in accountability, efficiency, and transparency.
Charlie Cullen murdered innocent people. We can, and did, put him in prison. But do not be mistaken; there is nothing 123622monstrous about Nurse Cullen. He exemplifies Arendt’s idea of “The Banality of Evil” in that there is nothing uniquely, inherently horrifying, or even different, about his mental architecture. Granted, Cullen had other troubling issues — at certain stages of his life he drank too much, was clinically depressed, and even attempted suicide. However, Graeber makes it clear that Cullen endured a childhood full of abuse and isolation, and much of what Cullen says leads me to believe he has a lot in common with us “normal” people. He wanted to help people. He wanted someone to pay attention to him, to love him. He was lonely, mentally ill, and did not have a proper support system or coping mechanism. Murder was the manifestation of his unchosen circumstances, not the product of his perverted, evil genius. Therein lies the truly disturbing nature of “The Good Nurse.”
Charles Graeber’s training and experience as an investigative reporter help him create a page turner with short quick-hitting chapters told by a variety of voices. Graeber masterfully constructs Amy’s character and her struggle to decide between her loyalty to Cullen (and by extension, herself, given the way she values trust), and her duty and desire to thwart any attempts at harming her patients. Her decision is the pivotal factor of the investigation. It’s a quick and interesting read, and although we already know how the story ends, Graeber’s storytelling prowess infuses mystery into every page. I am fascinated to see how this book will influence any further legal action against hospital executives that disrupted police investigations, and were perhaps complicit in the deaths of innocent patients.
                                                                                                             written by  Ezra Ellenberg

Jun 17

Mauritius Nurses as Advocate: A Threat to a National Government?

Kalaloo image.003

How can a nurse be a threat to a national government? Ask those who know Kallooa Bagooaduth, MSc, BSc, PG Dip. RN, the president of the Nursing Association of the tiny nation of Mauritius, or who heard him speak at the International Council of Nurses meeting in Melbourne, Australia, in May.

Bagooaduth was a panelist in a symposium developed by the Center for Health, Media & Policy at Hunter College. CHMP’s co-director Barbara Glickstein was another panelist who spoke about our work at the Center, and Diana Mason moderated the panel. They were joined by Eric Chan, the Principal Nursing Officer of the Hong Kong Hospital Authority in Hong Kong  and former Interim Nurse Scientist at the World Health Organization. More on Dr. Chan later.

Bagooaduth is a charge nurse at a hospital in Mauritius. Four years ago, he attended the quadrennial meeting of the International Council of Nurses and was inspired to get more involved in his country’s own health and nursing policies and advocacy. He ran for the presidency of the Mauritius Nursing Association and won.  Since that time, he has led the association in ways that have garnered public attention and made national policymakers nervous.

The Mauritius Nursing Association had not been visible as an advocate for the profession, nor for the public’s health. Over the past four years, Bagooaduth has led the association in developing an agenda for improving the working conditions for nurses in the country, as well as for promoting access to crucial health care services, such as abortion.

At the Melbourne conference, he discussed some of the accomplishments that were an outgrowth of using the media to get issues on the agenda of the public and policymakers, leading protests, and advocating for improving the health of the people:

Changing the requirement for the basic education of nurses from a certificate to diploma.

  • Reducing discrimination against female Nurses in pay and promotion criteria.
  • Improving nurses’ living conditions.
  • Improving the physical plant of hospitals.
  • Amending an 1893 law to decriminalize abortions in certain cases.

His advice to the audience:

  • provide information to the press that has real news value
  • be credible
  • be trustworthy
  • be available
  • speak in the public’s interest
  • be bold

He certainly exemplifies this last piece of advice. As one source who spoke off-the-record with us at the meeting, “Kallooa is not very popular with the government. I worry for his safety.”

We wish Kallooa Bagooaduth a long life of bold leadership. At the Melbourne meeting, the Maurtitius Nurses Association recieved ICN’s 2013 National Nursing Association Innovation Award and Bagooaduth was elected to Vice President of the Board of Directors of ICN. We expect he’ll be its president one day.

Kalaloo image 2.012

Barbara Glickstein, RN, MS, MPH, and Diana Mason, RN, PhD, FAAN, Co-Directors, CHMP

Jun 14

Narratives of Diversity inter-active workshop June 25

Narratives of Diversity, is an inter-active workshop that will focus on issues of diversity and marginalization in nurses’ personal and professional lives, academia, and health care organizations. Participants will gain experience in using reflective writing as a way of processing emotionally charged events to reduce stress and burnout.

In this interactive workshop Joy Jacobson and James Stubenrauch will guide participants through exercises involving prompted writing, reading, and sharing of their own stories of diversity and marginalization, while exploring strategies for raising awareness of these issues in their community, workplace, or school.

Deborah Washington, PhD, RN

Deborah Washington, PhD, RN

The keynote speaker will be Deborah Washington, PhD, RN, director of diversity for patient care services at Massachusetts General Hospital and a clinical instructor at the MGH Institute School of Nursing. In an interview, Dr. Washington said, “The advantage of working with a diverse workforce is that you work with people who understand specific cultures, beliefs, and attitudes. This translates into better patient care and a greater sense of satisfaction from patients and families with that care.”

This workshop will give nurses—clinicians, faculty, researchers, administrators, and students—an opportunity to explore their experiences with personal, professional, and societal diversity and marginalization.

Nurses at all levels of writing skill and experience are welcome. Click here and type in the code NARDIV to register.

Jun 14

Can Social Media Give the Gift of Life?

This is a repost from Beth’s Blog.  I read Beth’s Blog everyday and learn something new about the world of digital media. Today she has a guest post by Taryn Degnan the Manager of Social Media and Online Community at Common Sense Media.  You can find her on Twitter @TarynIdana

facebook page organ donation (1)

Social Media is Saving Lives. How’s That for ROI? by Taryn Degnan

  • Pasadena mom uses social media to find organ donor for daughter.
  • Kwirti Dwivedi finds a kidney for ailing mom via social media.
  • Facebook Organ Donor Initiative Prompts 100,000 Users To Select New Option.

Friends, those news headlines are real, and it means that something wild and crazy is happening online. Perfect strangers are connecting through social media to give and receive life every day. Read the rest of the post here

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